SDK Component Release Notes

Improvements

Overall CPU usage reduced. We’re continuing to work on this, so expect further improvements on this front in the future!

Tracking

Significantly reduced overall tracking latency. Holograms are now much more responsive to head movement.

Added “Limited Tracking” mode. In Limited Tracking mode, the Meta 2’s rotation (using the onboard IMU) continues to be tracked, but the Meta 2’s translation is no longer tracked. In other words, holograms will always appear at the same distance from the user no matter how the user’s head moves. This mode may also be referred to as “rotation-only tracking” or “three degrees of freedom (3DOF),” as opposed to Full Tracking, which may be referred to as “six degrees of freedom (6DOF).”

A Unity application can be configured to launch in limited tracking mode. To do so, check the “Rotation Only Tracking” checkbox on the SLAM Localizer component of the MetaCameraRig prefab. If this box is checked, the SLAM initialization UI will not be shown. This option is useful for applications which do not depend on the user’s movement through their space, e.g. watching a 2D video feed.

In Unity applications using the MetaCameraRig, limited tracking mode can be toggled on and off by pressing the F9 key. Pressing the F4 key while in Limited Tracking mode recenters the scene.

If SLAM is unable to initialize or loses the ability to track the environment, the Meta 2 automatically switches to limited tracking mode. When SLAM is again able to map the environment, the Meta 2 will automatically return to full tracking mode. In Unity applications using the MetaCameraRig, the corresponding messages indicating either “Full Tracking” or “Limited Tracking” will temporarily appear in the headset when the tracking mode changes.

In Limited Tracking mode, CPU usage is lower and hologram stability is improved.

Tracking will now continue to function if one monochrome camera is occluded.

Rendering

Added “2D Warp” and “3D Warp” to the MetaCameraRig’s Compositor component. 2D Warp reduces perceived latency as the user’s head rotates by warping the previously-rendered image frame just before sending it to the Meta 2’s display in order to account for the latest rotation of the user’s head. 3D Warp applies a similar technique, but in addition to accounting for the rotation of the user’s head, it also accounts for the translation of the user’s head. Both 2D Warp and 3D Warp also improve performance on hardware which is not capable of rendering the current application at 60 frames per second by filling in missing frames.

Our applications, including the Workspace and all example scenes, have been updated to take advantage of these new features. In particular, the Workspace is now much more responsive.

Warning: Some content is not compatible with these features. Please see here for more details.

Improved stability of depth-based occlusion when the user’s head moves quickly.

Hands

Hands tracking and depth-based occlusion are more responsive because we’ve significantly reduced the latency of our depth sensor pipeline.

User Interface

For Unity applications, we now show a variety of helpful messages within the headset to indicate status. For example, messages are now shown to indicate when calibration data is being loaded, when the application is initializing, and when a device status problem is detected (e.g. when the USB cable is unplugged). See the Unity SDK release notes for more details.

Virtual Webcam

When the Virtual Webcam is not in use, it no longer negatively impacts performance.

The Virtual Webcam feeds have been renamed.

The camera feed formerly named “Meta 2 Webcam” is now called Meta2 Webcam + Holographic Overlay to indicate that it contains both the RGB camera’s feed as well as holograms.

The camera feed formerly named “Meta 2 Webcam Color” is now called Meta2 Webcam to indicate that it contains only the RGB camera’s feed and not holograms.

Added “Magic Spheres” tutorial application to the “Developer Corner” section of the Meta Home. You can find the source code on Github. We’re hoping to feature applications from Meta SDK users there in the future, but in the meantime, please share your applications on the Community Forums!

Improved instructions in the Hands Tutorial.

Installer

Reduced size of installer.

The Unity 2017.3.0f3 installer is now included within the Meta 2 SDK installer. Unity version 5.6.0f3 is still supported.

Fixed Bugs

Fixed many crashes, including a few nasty Unity hangs!

Fixed high CPU when the Meta 2 is stationary and its monochrome cameras are occluded by nearby objects.

Fixed diagnostic utility reporting errors after the errors had been resolved (e.g. by plugging the headset back in).

Known Issues

On rare occasions, the eye calibration application launches but does not run. If this happens, please launch it again from the Meta Utility application.

Older NVIDIA graphics drivers are not entirely compatible with the SDK. Please update to the latest NVIDIA drivers for the best experience. At the time of release, the latest NVIDIA driver version is 390.77.